Blood and Snow
by Scififan33
Summary: Jasper never expected to find what he did in the Rocky Mountains. On hearing of the devastation they left behind he decides to stay for as long as he is allowed. Can he fix the girl they helped almost destroy?
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight; if I did Bella would have actually had a spine for the whole series and have told Edward to drop dead._

_I have a poll up for the new Naruto story._

_I know I am posting a lot of new stories but they will probably be updated more slowly, I have done chapter 1's for them and want to see what people think._

**Chapter 1**

He followed the scent of freshly spilled blood as fast as he could. He knew that scent, how could he ever forget? But what was she doing here? She should be safe in Forks or off at college somewhere warm and sunny, not high in the Rocky Mountains where hikers never came. She wasn't the hiking type, how many times had one of them had to save her from tripping over her own feet? That was when two new scents reached him and he growled as he recognised one, Victoria. The other was a male vampire but he didn't know the scent so not Laurent. He had warned the family she was dangerous but Edward had insisted she wasn't James' mate. He had been right to trust the emotions over surface thoughts. He only hoped he was in time to atone for his mistakes.

Jasper crouched downwind and out of sight, fighting the instinct to growl as he took the scene in. Bella was sprawled on the rocky ground, her once long hair shorn short and her clothes in tatters. She appeared to be unconscious and the blood he had smelt was coming from a head wound. Otherwise she looked mostly unharmed which was good. His gaze shifted to her attackers and he took in the utterly deranged looking redhead, her emotions were a mess of rage, pain, satisfaction and hunger. Killing her would almost be doing her a favour. The male with her was young, in human and vampire years and was struggling to keep from simply draining Bella.

Jasper readied himself and then attacked, aiming at Victoria first, she would not escape again. She barely had time to realise he was there before her head came free of her body. He tossed it aside and went for the male. He put up more of a fight until Jasper hit him with a potent cocktail of lethargy and peace. As he slumped Jasper removed his head. He tore their bodies apart and then piled the pieces together before pulling out his lighter and setting them ablaze. As soon as they were well alight he moved to Bella's side, being careful not to breath, he didn't want to end up draining her himself after saving her. He quickly removed his own light jacket and wrapped her in, neither of them was dressed for the freezing weather that was moving in as the sun set and he knew he had to find shelter fast or she would die. He stemmed the blood as best he could, picked her up and cradled her close gently and then took off as quick as possible without causing her any discomfort. Just as the snow began to fall he found a Ranger hut and quickly moved inside. He lay Bella down on the cot and then moved to start the fire. Once that was going he found some spare clothes and stripped her down before redressing her and tucking her into the sleeping bag and blankets.

He'd done all he could to help her for the moment. With no phone he couldn't call for aide and he couldn't risk taking her back out into the cold. All he could do was hope she would recover with what little he could do and that when she woke his presence wouldn't make things worse.

* * *

><p>She wasn't cold. That was the first thought to cross her mind as she slowly regained consciousness. Why wasn't she cold? After that she gradually became aware of something soft beneath her, last thing she remembered was hard stones digging into her skin. She was still in pain but that was nothing new. So what did all this mean? What new torture had Victoria come up with?<p>

"Bella? I can feel you're awake, it's alright now. Victoria and the male with her are dead." A soft, accented voice called and Bella froze before realising the voice was familiar. Slowly she opened her eyes and found herself staring at a very familiar vampire.

"Jasper?" She didn't understand, what was he doing here? Had he saved her? But why?

"Hello Bella." He greeted softly before taking a slow step towards her.

"Did you….kill them?"

"Yes. I found you all on the mountain. I am so sorry Bella, this is all my fault. I tried to convince the family that Victoria was a threat and you wouldn't have been alone if I hadn't snapped at your party."

Bella frowned and then pushed herself slowly into a sitting position even as her head spun a bit. "Jasper it wasn't your fault. Of course you snapped, I'm Edward's singer. You felt his bloodlust plus the others and your own. I never blamed you. Edward left because he got tired of me and I don't blame him, he was better off without me."

"No Bella, if anything you were far too good for that idiot brother of mine. He told the family that you asked us to leave."

"What?" Bella gasped, eyes wide with pain. How many lies had he told? "I never wanted any of you to go, I would have gone with you." She whispered and Jasper moved close enough to gently put a hand on her shoulder.

"We should never have taken his word for it, we should have come and seen you."

"It doesn't matter anymore." She whispered, plucking at the sleeping bag.

Jasper cautiously sat on the edge of the cot, he didn't want to spook her but other than when she had first woken he had felt no fear coming from her. "Bella, may I ask why you were in the mountains?"

"Running from Victoria but it obviously didn't work." Was the bitter answer.

"Bella please tell me what happened?"

"What happened? What happened is thanks to Edward you left me unprotected. Once you were gone Laurent showed up, scouting for her. He found me in the woods and was going to kill me, he said it would be less painful for me if he did it rather than Victoria, but then these massive wolves appeared and chased him off. Turns out he was right, he was just going to kill me, Victoria….if he had killed me none of them would have died." She choked out and Jasper frowned.

"Who died?" What had they caused by leaving the redhead alive?

"Charlie got a call out one night, I didn't think anything of it since it happened occasionally. I went to bed and just assumed he'd already gone into the station when he wasn't home the next morning. They….they found his body that afternoon. It got recorded as a bear attack due to all the damage but I knew the truth. He died because of me. Jacob was there for me, wouldn't let me push him away. He made sure I ate, went to school, kept living. Renee didn't even come to the funeral, just sent some flowers and a card. Two weeks later Renee and Phil were dead in a car accident. That's when I found out about them, the Pack. They moved me onto the Reservation with Jacob and Billy, it was the biggest mistake they could have made."

"She came after you there?" He asked in disbelief, surely the wolves could have handled one vampire? He had never met them but Carlisle had spoken of the wolves many times and how they could kill vampires.

"Not alone. People started going missing in Seattle." She whispered and if Jasper's heart still beat it would have frozen. He had heard of that and had been considering taking a look since it was so close to Forks when the disappearances had stopped. "They came at night. Fist anyone knew the Clearwater's place was burning. Harry and Seth never made it out. Leah got her mom out and then ended up shifting to protect her but it wasn't enough, they were found with their necks snapped. Sam came running, leaving Emily alone while he went to help his pack. She died alone in their house. They started fires to make people flee and in the confusion it was easy to kill the pack. Jake….he died right in front of me, trying to protect Billy. It didn't work. I ran, I guess the smoke hid my scent. I took Jake's bike and got out of there. Been running ever since, never staying somewhere more than two nights or getting close to anyone. I was staying in a cabin in the foothills when they found me and dragged me into the mountains where no one would hear a thing. Guess I figured I was dead."

_TBC….._


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: not mine_

**Chapter 2**

Jasper watched as Bella slept. After her emotional outpouring she had fallen into an exhausted slumber so he had let her sleep, deciding she probably needed it. Rifling through the cupboards revealed tins of baked beans, soup and spam. Not the best variety but at least she wouldn't go hungry. Making sure she was deeply asleep his slipped away to hunt, he would have to ensure he stayed well fed until they parted, he would not kill her after going to all the trouble of saving her. Though had he really saved her? Everyone she loved was dead and if she had been on the run she had probably dropped out of high school too. He decided that he would do whatever he could to get her set up somewhere. She'd been bright so finishing school should be easy enough and if she wanted to go to college he'd pay even if he had to disguise it as a scholarship, it was the least he could do after the pain they had caused her. Question was why hadn't Alice seen what was happening and had the Cullen's protect her and her family?

Jasper quickly took down some deer and then washed up in a creek before sitting to think. After her emotional retelling he hoped she'd be a bit steadier. During the talk her emotions had been all over the place, not that he blamed her, but it was a lot for an empath to deal with. So many people had died, how could he convince her that it wasn't her fault? There was a good chance she would never fully recover from the last few years and that was a depressing thought. He stood from the rock he'd been sitting on and headed back to the cabin, not wanting her to wake up alone.

* * *

><p>Four days later and they were still in the cabin, Bella's wounds seemed to be healing fine thankfully but they had been trapped by a nasty blizzard. He refused to risk carrying her through it and having her become ill. Things between them were…awkward would be a good word to use. Bella had been embarrassed by her outburst when she'd woken and he was still trying to deal with the guilt over what his and the Cullen's actions had caused. At least they weren't fighting or arguing. He didn't like how withdrawn she was though. She was shutting down emotionally and that wasn't healthy, she needed to grieve for everything she had lost. The thing was he didn't have a clue how to get through to her. So they fell into a pattern of quiet days and nights spent by her bed ensuring no nightmares. The only break was when he needed to hunt which he did fairly frequently.<p>

Of course whenever you think things can't get worse they almost always do. It started with a slight cough and went downhill from there. After two days Jasper knew he had no choice but to risk the run down the mountain with her. Bella was running a high fever and he could hear her lungs struggling for air past whatever was congesting them. The medical supplies in the cabin were very basic and of no use under the circumstances. He bundled her up in everything warm they had and then scooped her up in his arms, she was too weak to carry her on his back and have her hang on. Once she was secure he left the cabin and ran as fast as he could with her safety in mind.

He bypassed the small clinics he passed until he reached St Patricks Hospital in Missoula. He rushed into the Emergency Department, Bella too still in his arms. "Help me!" He yelled and the medical staff descended on them, gently taking her from him. A nurse was soon at his side with a clipboard and he took it to fill in, hesitating only briefly before putting in her name and age, Isabella Whitlock, 21. He knew she had no id after all and this way if anyone human was looking for her they wouldn't unless she wanted it. Plus this meant they would tell him without him having to eavesdrop and he would be allowed to stay with her. Once he'd filled in what he could he went to find a phone to callings lawyer, they would need some paperwork quickly.

"Mr Whitlock?" a doctor finally called and Jasper walked over.

"How is she?"

"Your wife is resting comfortably now. We have her on oxygen to help her breath and IV fluids to keep her hydrated. What happened?"

"We were camping in the mountains, our anniversary is next week. We went hiking in the snow and Bella fell, she was soaked. But we got right back to the cabin and she got dry and warm. A few days later she started coughing. It got worse so we headed down."

"It's a good thing you did. We have her on very strong antibiotics to try and clear out the fluid in her lungs. She will need to stay for about a week depending on how well she responds to treatment."

"Can I see her?"

"As soon as she is settled in her room." The doctor promised and Jasper relaxed a little. He hated hospitals, hated the smells and the emotional atmosphere but he would endure for Bella's sake. This was his fault, he should have brought her down from the mountains immediately rather than try and wait it out. So far no one had asked for id thanks to him pumping them full of trust but it wouldn't last. He had a driver's license on him but that was it, thankfully it was in the right name. He just had to hope a package from Jenks arrived quickly. He might be able to buy time by saying he had left everything at the cabin in his rush if asked too soon. Why had he claimed Bella as he wife and not a sibling? Other than that disastrous trip to Phoenix he hadn't really spent any time with her, Edward had always been careful to keep her away and in the end he had good reason too. Jasper had been the one to attack her after all, even if he had been influenced by the others bloodlust. He leant against the wall and gave into the rather human urge to sigh, why did he feel so confused around her?

_TBC…._


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: Not mine_

**Chapter 3**

Jasper opened the package and smiled as he removed the documents. Jenks had done his usual excellent work. Birth certificate, school transcripts, marriage licence, credit cards, passport, all in the name of Isabella Whitlock. He had even included the matching documents that Jasper would need thankfully. He would have to pay him extra for that. He got out the woman's wallet he had bought and put what needed to be in it in the proper places as well as some cash. He then slipped it into the backpack that also held the basics when it came to clothes and toiletries. It was a good thing Alice had dragged him shopping so many times since it gave him a basic idea of how to guess sizes.

He returned to the hospital and put the bag in the closet in Bella's room. He then sat beside the bed where she slept peacefully. Thankfully the medication was working and she was improving, he could hear how much more easily she was breathing now. He froze as she moved slightly on the bed and then slowly her eyes opened. "It's alright Bella, you are in the hospital. You have been very sick." He told her softly, not wanting to scare her.

"Jas...per?"

"Yes Bella." He picked up the small cup on the table and held it to her lips. "Small sips." He cautioned as she obeyed.

There was a knock on the door and then it opened, revealing a nurse. "Ah, good morning Mr and Mrs Whitlock." She smiled, not seeing Bella's confusion at the name. She glanced at Jasper who winked at her and so she kept quiet until the nurse left.

"Mr and Mrs?" She asked and Jasper lounged back in his chair.

"You had no id so it was the easiest way to ensure they would allow me nearby and that if anyone is looking for you they won't recognise the name." He explained and she nodded.

"What happened?"

"Your cough got a lot worse very fast, you were struggling to breathe so I brought you here. They've had you on some very strong antibiotics to clear your lungs as well as fluids. You've been here for three days and the doctor said if you are recovering well you can probably leave at the end of the week."

"Good. I hate hospitals." She mumbled sleepily and Jasper chuckled.

"So do I. Get some rest Bella, I won't leave you alone." He whispered and actually got a small smile from her in return. Her eyes closed and he reached out to gently help her go back to sleep, soothing her emotions.

* * *

><p>Jasper waited on his chair while Bella showered and dressed. He smiled when she came out of the bathroom in jeans and a jumper that fit alright thankfully. Thankfully a nurse had taken some scissors to her hair and neatened it up for her. "Ready to go?"<p>

"Yes." She replied eagerly and he chuckled, putting her backpack over his shoulder. She had already filled out the paperwork so she was free to go. They walked out of the hospital and Bella hesitated.

Jasper slowly reached over and took her hand, making her start but she didn't try to pull away. "Car's this way. I got a suite at a nearby hotel since they said you still need lots of rest."

"You don't have to do this Jasper."

"I know Bella, but I want to." He told her and she hesitated before nodding and following him to the car…well truck really. He helped her in and then got in to drive them to the hotel. She stared at it in wonder. The last few years on the run she'd slept on the streets, in ratty motels that would have given her Dad fits, in the wild, wherever she was she would sleep. She hadn't seen anything this nice since…..since Jasper and Alice had run with her to Phoenix. Jasper got out and gave the keys to the valet so she took a deep breath and got out as well, sticking close to Jasper as they went inside and then up to the fifth floor. He led her down the hall and then opened a door with a key card. They went inside and Bella's eyes went wide. "There's two bedrooms. I gave you the master since it has its own bathroom." He pointed to the door on the right.

"Thanks." She took the backpack and went into the room, smiling as she saw the massive bed. She put away the few things in the bag, smiling when she found more clothes in the same size already in the closet and draws. She flopped down on the bed, sinking into the heavenly mattress and pillows. She cuddled a pillow and slowly drifted off to sleep. She slept through Jasper peering in to check on her half an hour later.

* * *

><p>Jasper stared at the phone in his hand. Finding the Cullen's hadn't been hard with Carlisle working as a doctor. The questions was should he call or not? They had abandoned Bella and then him, did they deserve to know what had happened? He sighed and leant back on the couch, listening to Bella's soft breathing in the other room. It was a relief to find no sign of congestion or trouble in her breathing. But now they would have to decide what happened next, would she want to go her own way or would she let him stay by her side? He was worried about her going off on her own, it would be easy for her to fall into the old habits of running when she didn't have to anymore. And he found he didn't want to be alone either. He could always go and stay with Peter and Charlotte but as much as they included him he always felt a bit like the third wheel after a week or so.<p>

Hearing Bella beginning to stir he called down for room service, figuring she'd be hungry after sleeping most of the day away. She came out of the bedroom looking very rumpled and sleepy. "Dinners on the way."

"Thanks." She mumbled sleepily, flopping down on the couch. Jasper just smiled at her before getting up to get the door when room service arrived. He set the tray down on the table and Bella forced herself to sit up while Jasper took the covers off the plates.

"I wasn't sure what you would like and it would look suspicious if I only ordered enough for one." He told her when she stared at the food in shock.

"I think this is three meals." She commented and he shrugged. She began eating and he poured her a glass of milk. "What happens next?" She asked cautiously when she as nearly done and Jasper straightened up to look at her.

"What would you like to happen?"

"I….I don't know." She finally admitted and he nodded.

"Then you take time and think about it. I'm not going anywhere unless you tell me you want me to leave." He promised and she nodded but he could feel she didn't fully believe him and he didn't blame her after what she had been through.

_TBC…_


End file.
